Relatives of an Armenian soldier who reportedly defected to Azerbaijan are demanding an independent account of his situation. Hakob Indjighulian's relatives staged a protest in Yerevan on August 13.

They called on Armenia's president and defense minister to get involved in the situation. Azerbaijan's state television aired an interview with Indjighulian on August 12.

He announced that he had defected to the Azerbaijani side last week, saying he was beaten by his supervisor.

Armenia's Defense Ministry said the televised interview violated the Geneva Convention on the treatment of prisoners of war.

The de facto Defense Ministry of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic inside Azerbaijan said last week that Azerbaijani forces captured Indjighulian near the border of the Armenian-populated breakaway region.

Armenia has been locked in conflict with Azerbaijan for more than two decades over the enclave.